Andrew Fisk

So its 73 Billion Pounds Sterling to decomission the nations existing Nuclear Power Plants…

Does anyone still seriously think a new generation of ‘Radwaste Generators’ is a good idea?  Well not counting Labour Party members that is! 

Come on Gordon do the maths. 

There is no way a private corporation could afford this sort of cost and that means that ordinary taxpayers will foot the bill (just as they already are for the existing piles of toxic waste…)

The Liberal Democrat solution is clean energy. (I define ‘Clean’ as not hazadous to human health or the world envrionment) Wind, Wave, Solar Tidal, Geothermal…. and even Carbon Capture, but no to failed technologies of the 20th century….

We also want to decentralise the Grid.  Too much energy is wasted in generation and transmission.  We want localised power plants.  Combinded Heat and Power, Waste reuse, microgeneration… It doesn’t work well with the old Labour idea of large Centralised grids….

Last but definately not least, we need to be more efficent.  Consevre what we already have and use less.  Not waste valuable time, energy and lots (and lots…!) of money.

No to Nuclear! join the campaign at http://ourcampaign.org.uk/no2nuclear

What would it mean to have PR (Proportional Representation) for English and Welsh local elections?

Last May Scotland went to the polls and use for the first time STV-PR (A form of PR) for its local elections.   STV was favoured by Scotish Labour, Lib Dems and, I beleive, the SNP… it allowed the share of the seats in councils north of the bordre to reflect the share of the votes cast.  It also retained the link between Councillors and their wards and it meant that voters had the chance to select candidates rather than parties.

So a rawing success then? Despite problems with over complex ballot papers I would say yes it was.

So when will it come down south?  And how would English and Welsh local government be changed?

Labour has left the door open on PR for the Commons.  I’m not holding my breath on that one, but local government could see eletoral reform sooner rather than later.  In Stroud STV (Single Transferable Vote) would lead to ‘a balanced’ council at Ebley Mill.  Politicians would run in fear of losing their seats if they weren’t up to the job.  The different Parties would have to work together.  Modern ‘Partnership’ politics…

It would also, probably, mean less elections.  At the moment we have local elections every year in some areas of the Stroud District but STV could mean ‘all out’ elections only 1 in 4 years. 

Labour and Tories talk about boosting turnout and encouraging reengagement with the politcial process.  Won’t happen without electoral reform!…

Is there anybody out there?  No I’m not making a comment on the number of hits (or lack thereof) I’m getting on this site!… I’m just wondering whether I’m lucky or whether there is ’something looking out for me?’… strange topic for a political Blog?

Maybe.  Nick Clegg doesn’t beleive in God.  Tony Blair ‘didn’t do God’ (even though he believed in Gods existance…?!?)  I suspect (maybe) that Dave Cameron thinks he is ….. (er better not comment on that!)… so its political 

Politicians seek to use faith (rightly or wrongly) as part and parcel to the process of winning power.  I need to declare an interest at this point.  I’m a Christian.  But I’m also a Liberal…. There is interesting interplay between the two sets of ideas.

My day job is Software Quality Assurance.  I’m very employable.  I can expect to earn a lot of money during my career (more than in Politics I can tell you!) I have a secure home and no  debts to speak of.  I’m ‘Lucky’… if you want to accept that concept?

 Our world is full of situations and individuals that are not as ‘lucky’ as me.  The horrible madness in Kenya and wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Places we know about because of the media.  there are plenty of others we don’t know about….

So whether you have faith in something ‘out there’ or not, maybe what matters is our attitude to people and situations that we encounter and how we react to them. 

I first got interested in Politics after the summer of 1988.  At the time the weather was considered to be ‘freak’ but that year awakened my interest in environmental sustainability. 

I wanted to ‘get involved’ and ‘change the world’…. And I knew the best way to do this was through a politcal party. 

I looked around and Neil Kinnock and his friends were way too ‘Totalitarian’ for me.  The culture of the Labour Party at the end of the 80’s (And early 90’s…. indeed even today) was alien to a great deal of what I believed.

Tories?  YUCK!  After Thatcher there was no way I would touch them with a barge pole…

Being born and brought up in Stroud I naturally considered joining up with the Greens.  I seriously considered it until I realised that their strength was only in a few scattered areas.  They were not a national force.  Although I shared many of my principles and beliefs with them I couldn’t see them winning Stroud and no way could they implement their policies at Westminster.

Along comes Mr Ashdown.  Eastbourne Byelection put the ‘Social and Liberal Democrats’ make on the map.  I saw that the Lib Dems had been campaigning for ‘Sustainability’ for years.  In 1991 I went to the Party’s ‘youth conference’  and listen to Simon Highes MP talking about ‘The Polluter Pays Principle’ 

The Lib Dems had campaigned on Environmental issues for years but also they had MPs!  Nineteen members of Parliament when I joined.  Now we have 60+ … the choice was a no-brainer!….  I joined a movement with a desire to implement Social, Environmental and Political Justice in our country and abroad. 

I don’t want to run down the Greens because they are sincere in what they do. I just think every political party needs to be ‘Green’…. It’s essential to build a partnership from every hue and colour of the political spectrum.  That’s grown up politics and that is what I beleive in! 

Barack Obama wins the South Carolina primary.

Its good to see a Liberal on the up!  I just hope that the ‘Race Card’ isnt used again in this contest.  Whether or not ‘Billary’ (Hilary + Hubby) said or did anything ‘out of order’ i’ll leave to my American friends to decide.  US Politics is a tough game after all….

Should we have primaries in the UK?  Please no!… But Caucuses sound fun.  Maybe they could be done to music?  (Line dance your way to selecting your candidate…. hmm maybe not)

I’ve been watching CNN again.
This time I listened to the founder of Microsoft talking about how the worlds leading companies can help the “bottom Billion” out of poverty.
Bit vague and I wonder just how many of the hardened CEOs at the Davos Conference in Switzerland are going to rush back home and pour money into Africa and other poverty stricken societies?
That said the Chinese Government and industry is heavily investing in Africa. They are not daft. Africa has emense riches and potential. So should ‘The West’ do the same? Should we open our markets to the ‘developing world?’
Can we deny growth for the ‘Third World?’ I don’t think so. We must act together to liberate the ‘Bottom Billion’ and Creative Capitalism is part (only part…) of the answer. We need to encourage clean energy production and conservation. Free and fair trade so everyone can earn a living.
We also have to realise that the developing nations are equal partners in the running of the planet. But don’t get me started on that one…. yet!

So once again the Labour Party dodges the issue of voting reform.

Yet another review bites the dust and again the government is no closer to honouring its 1997 manifesto commitment on electoral reform.

How can if be possible that the mother of parliaments elects a government on only 35% of the vote (55% of MPs)…? not to mention the fact that the second chamber is completely unelected. 

That’s not democracy! (as you may have gathered by the number of exclaimation marks in this story I’m a little bit ‘wound up by this issue!)

If the Scots, Irish and Welsh can be trusted with PR why not the whole of the UK?

British Liberalism is about partnership and gaining power is only so it can be given back to the people. 

The only party that has a hope in hell of implementing fair votes is the last remaining progressive UK Party (yes you guessed) the Liberal Democrats. 

With the US Federal Bank cutting its rates by 0.75 points to 3.5% has panic set in? 

With the world stock exchanges being so volitile and the colapse of Northern Rock many comentators are using the “R” word for both the US and UK economies… Indeed the whole global ecomomy is in danger of a servre downturn.

So Gordon, what ever happened to “No more boom and bust”  Remember the story of the “7 fat years followed by the 7 lean”…. Why has personal debt sored to record levels? Why has house price inflation got out of control?  Energy inflation and food inflation are also at 1980’s levels.  why is public borrowing so high? and why have we had the first run on a Bank in the Uk for 130 years? The Bible story teaches us to prepare for the bad times during the previous good times. Patently this has not been the case with this Government.

And who has been in charge of the Treasury for the last 10 years?…

The artist Damien Hirst is planning to make his Dudbridge facility self-sufficient for electricity.  How? well the old Automold building is being redeveloped and Mr Hirst plans to cover it with solar panels.

I have to admit that I’m not a great fan of his artwork but to have a significant source of clean energy in Rodborough has got to be good.

The dangers of climate change are once again in our thoughts as thousands of homes and businesses are threatened by flooding.  I fear that it will prove very difficult indeed to stabilise the worlds weather systems.   But every peice of the gigsaw matters… So well done Mr Hirst. Its a good start.

The last few days have seen the ’second coming of the king’… Well if you are a Newcastle Unitied fan that is!  Yes now ‘our Kev’ is back in charge the good times are bound to come back to St Jame’s Park.

A return to the ‘good times’ is something that is needed outside of the English Premiership.  On both sides of the Altantic new ‘fresh faced’ politicians are coming to the fore.  In Nevada, presidential hopeful, Barack Obama fought a strong campaign to gain 45% of the Democrat vote, nearly catching the Clintons… Put 26th January in your diaries, that’s when South Carolina goes to the polls.  In the UK our very own Nick Clegg is making moves to ‘break the mold of British Politics’  I probably haven’t got the right quote but what the hey it’s all good stuff!

Or is it?  Do we need ‘personality cults’ to define ‘change’.  Our Soceity desperately needs ‘real change.’ Threats from terrorism, organised crime and climate change need a response from the whole global community.  Social problems in my home town are rife throughout the west (homelessness, poverty, drug addiction and family breakdown, to mention some) 

To answer my own question, with my personal opinion, I would say that the need for change comes from the ‘bottom up.’  As a Liberal Democrat I want to see a grassroots movement not just a ‘Westminster club.’ But to leaders are needed as agents of change. I watched on CNN today a documentory on Martin Luther King.  Individuals can make a difference!

So roll on November (President Obama?…) and well? 150 MPs inside of 7 years… that sounds pretty good as well Mr Clegg!